A Thin Black Line

VRTOV / doublewire productions 2017

When bombs rain down on their hometown, a family is broken apart. A young girl is forced to flee by boat; her father, to stay behind.

For young Patima, the war had always seemed a distant threat. But when the bombs reach her hometown, she is forced to flee; leaving her father behind.

The bombing of Darwin in 1942 was the first and largest aerial attack on mainland Australia during the Second World War. As bombers strafed the lightly defended city, nearly half the civilian population fled southwards in the belief a Japanese invasion was imminent. Amongst them was Indigenous filmmaker Douglas Watkin’s mother, just five-years old at the time.

An animated documentary in interactive real-time Virtual Reality, A Thin Black Line invites the audience to step into a pivotal event in the history of one family, and a nation, as seen by a young child. Directed by Douglas Watkin, with VR direction by Oscar Raby and art by acclaimed Aboriginal artist Vernon Ah Kee, A Thin Black Line tells the story of a family’s struggle to stay together in the face of war. With thanks to Patricia Watkin for generously sharing her family’s story, this project was commissioned by SBS Australia and made with the support of Screen Queensland and Screen Australia. Available for Gear VR.

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With direction from Oscar Raby, founder of award-winning reality studio VRTOV, and illustrated by acclaimed Aboriginal artist Vernon Ah Kee, this 360 degree evolving story paints a picture of Patima's family life and experiences during Australia's worst air attack of World War II

Produced in association with SBSDeveloped and Produced with the Assistance of Screen QueenslandProduced in collaboration with SBS Digital Creative Labs for SBS Australia, with production investment from Screen QueenslandProduced with support from Screen Australia